Here are a few Virginia (and national) news headlines, political and otherwise, for Saturday, September 21. Also see President Obama’s weekly address in which he says, “Congress must meet two deadlines in the coming weeks: pass a budget by the end of the month to keep the government open, and raise the debt ceiling so America can pay its bills.”

*House spending bill sets up battle with Senate (“The chamber’s stopgap budget plan funds the government into December but strips money from Obamacare.” I love how the media talks neutrally about the “House” and the “chamber,” instead of saying “Republicans.” They are such cowards.)

*Rigell only Republican to vote against budget bill (“Although he favors defunding the Affordable Care Act, Rigell said he could not support the bill because it continues automatic spending cuts – the sequester – that have taken a toll in his military-rich district.”)

*Cuccinelli team: Aide’s emails were not OK’d (So, the choices here are: a) the emails WERE approved, in which case Cuccinelli engaged in seriously bad behavior; or b) Cuccinelli was not in control of his office or aware what was going on. Either way, it’s a Cuccinelli #FAIL.)

*E.W. Jackson calls for eliminating corporate income tax, suggests Cuccinelli agrees (Wow, that would be an unmitigated DISASTER!)

*McAuliffe avoids position on EPA rules, Cuccinelli dodges on House spending vote (Hahaha, gotta love it. Or not.)

*Va. Republicans didn’t criticize Bolling in order to keep spotlight on Cuccinelli (“Speaking against him would strengthen the perception that the party is in disarray, some say.” Which it is, of course.)

*Eric Cantor on defunding: I support Ted Cruz (Wow, what a moron.)

*Senator Tim Kaine Is Officially the “Best Speller in the United States” (Not quite, but congratulations anyway!)

*With master plan, ODU’s vision for future coming into focus

*36 Northern Virginia public schools fall short of full state accreditation (This whole exercise is counterproductive.)

*Cuccinelli, Wolf Call Whitbeck’s Jewish Joke “Inappropriate” (Lame all around.)

*Cold front brings rain today, but wonderful weather is close behind (“You’ll definitely want to consider grabbing the rain gear, but it won’t be long till we’re back to blissful.”)

*Zimmermann keeps Nats’ hopes alive (“Jordan Zimmermann goes the distance, allowing just two hits while walking one and striking out nine as Washington keeps its faint playoff hopes alive.”)

This morning came encouraging news for anyone who cares about: a) human health; b) human well being; c) the future of our planet’s habitability (or lack thereof, if we continue on the current path); and d) the transition to a sustainable energy economy (which will still happen, but much more slowly, if the fossil fuel companies and their Republican lackeys get their way). What sane person could oppose human health and well being, having a habitable planet for future generations, and building a prosperous and sustainable economy for the 21st century and beyond? Take one guess.

You got it: Virginia Republicans – who receive huge sums up campaign ca$$ from coal (and other fossil fuel) companies – are ratcheting up the hysteria this morning about the “war on coal.” Mark Obenshain, for instance, hyperventilates that “[a]s Attorney General, I’m going to stand up for coal jobs, and for all Virginians, in opposing these overreaching federal regulations that kill jobs and economic opportunity in Virginia.” And Ken Cuccinelli goes for his usual wildly-over-the-top, super-hyperbolic approach, Big Lie approach, claiming (falsely) that the modest – and long, long overdue – new rules on future power plants will ” crush Virginia jobs and hike energy prices for businesses, families and workers.”  

Here’s what you need to know about these statements: a) they’re complete bull****, essentially not an ounce of truth to them; b) they’re aimed at continuing the coal company gravy train – boatloads of campaign cash

from the coal companies, that is – to their own campaigns; and c) did I mention that they’re totally full of it?

How about, instead of Republican blather and hysteria, we look at a few actual FACTS? I know, what a concept! Anyway, here goes (fully aware that Republicans do NOT care about facts).

1. “Did the EPA just kill new coal plants?”, Mark Obenshain asks? Uh, no. Not even close. For starters, these long overdue (given that the Supreme Court back in 2007 essentially ordered the EPA to issue regulations on CO2 emissions) rules only cover NEW coal-fired power plants, not on EXISTING ones. But, you say, that’s a big deal, right? Well…see #2 below.

2. In fact, as the Washington Post’s Wonkblog explains: “It’s entirely possible that no coal power plants of any type will get built for years, regardless of what the EPA does Friday. That’s because natural gas is so cheap right now it’s not really economical to build coal plants.” That’s right, let’s emphasize that point: cheap natural gas has ALREADY made new coal-fired power plants uncompetitive. And that’s HIGHLY likely to continue, given the boom in natural gas production in this country. Here’s Wonkblog:

Roughly speaking, natural gas prices needs to rise above $7 per million BTU for new coal plants to be competitive. But the U.S. Energy Information Administration projects that natural gas prices will stay under $6 per million BTU for the next two decades. As a result, the agency doesn’t think any coal plants will be built between 2018 and 2035.

That’s one reason why an earlier draft of the EPA power-plant rule predicted that the regulations for new power plants would have virtually no costs in the near term. After all, no new coal plants were likely to get built in the United States anyway. So the EPA rule won’t make much difference one way or the other. Unless, of course, natural gas prices rise unexpectedly  – something that’s happened in the past.

Did you hear that, Ken Cuccinelli and Mark Obenshain? That’s right: natural gas is out-competing coal (it’s called “capitalism,” ever hear of it, Ken and Mark?); and because of that, “no new coal plants were likely to get built in the United States anyway.” None. Zero. Nada. Zilch. So what the hell are you hyperventilating about again?

3. Coal-fired power plants are also increasingly not competitive with clean energy. As Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz explains, we are undergoing a “clean energy revolution – now.” Did you know, for instance, that in 2012, “wind was America’s largest source of new electrical capacity, accounting for 43 percent of all new installations?” Did you know that since 2008, “the price of solar panels has fallen by 75 percent, and solar installations have multiplied tenfold?” Did you know that “[r]enewable energy is becoming more and more competitive, to the point now that new generation from wind costs less than conventional coal-fired generation — and can even give natural gas a run for its money?” (see above graph from Greentech Media on the steeply falling cost and rapidly increased deployment of wind power)

4. If you’re a dumb enough investor to put money into new coal-fired power plants, even as they are being out-competed by natural gas and, increasingly, wind and solar (not to mention energy efficiency, which demolishes new coal-fired power plants purely on economic grounds), the fact is that coal plants can still be built under the EPA regulations. But again, you’d be really, really dumb to build one, given that they are not the lowest-cost option to generate power, and given that the trend lines are all moving in the wrong direction – for coal, that is.

5. Research shows that far from being an economic positive for coal-producing regions, “[c]oal mining areas fared significantly worse on all indicators compared with non-mining areas of Appalachia and/or the nation.” That’s in terms of median household income, poverty rates, unemployment, disease and mortality rates, you name it. The question is, why would anyone in their right mind want to invest in something that kills jobs, humans, and the environment, especially when it’s not even economically competitive with other options (natural gas, energy efficiency, wind, and increasingly solar power)? You’d have to be an ignoramus, right? Speaking of which…hello Ken Cuccinelli and Mark Obenshain? Any response to these facts? Or are you just going to keep on hyperventilating and making s*** up?

Here are a few Virginia (and national) news headlines, political and otherwise, for Friday, September 20. Also check out the video of Rep. Gerry Connolly ripping the Republicans’ “Social Darwinism” – in this case, slashing food assistance for millions of Americans.

*Friendly gestures from Iran mark a rhetorical U-turn (Definitely worth exploring the positive signs from Iran, but of course we need to have our eyes wide open…)

*EPA moves to limit emissions of future coal-and gas-fired power plants (Good news, the problem is that climate science says this needs to have happened about a decade or two ago, and also be much MORE stringent. Not that the fossil fuel folks and their bought-and-paid-for hacks and “deniers” give a crap.)

*Pope Says Church Is ‘Obsessed’ With Gays, Abortion and Birth Control (The closer the Pope gets to what Jewish progressive revolutionary Jesus preached, the further he gets from the Republican Party’s intolerance and starve-the-poor nastiness. Go Pope Francis!)

*The Crazy Party (“In recent months, the G.O.P. seems to have transitioned from being the stupid party to being the crazy party.”)

*Obama must not yield on Obamacare, debt ceiling or shutdown (Agreed. Just as he shouldn’t have yielded on the “fiscal cliff” – but he did for some inscrutable/incomprehensible reason.)

*Terry McAuliffe Says Ken Cuccinelli Wanted to Make Divorce Harder for Women, and He’s Right

*Analysis: Ex-chef’s settlement is a break for Cuccinelli, avoids potential October surprises

*Review of AG office emails to energy company enlightening (Meanwhile, the legalized corruption in Cuccinelli’s own office was mind boggling.)

*McAuliffe’s views on the environment? He disagrees with Cuccinelli.

*McAuliffe outspends Cuccinelli on TV ads

*In Virginia Governor Race, Third Party Spoiler Threatens

*Gingrich says no to talk of a Senate run in Virginia (Too bad, that would have been hilarious!)

*Medicaid’s no cure-all for McAuliffe’s budget plan (“None of this argues against expanding Medi­caid in Virginia. Mr. McAuliffe is right about that, and the Republicans, including his opponent for governor, are wrong.”)

*Cuccinelli camp’s new ad spotlights NoVA business group’s hard-fought endorsement

*Cuccinelli touts record, slams McAuliffe in half-hour infomercial (I can barely stand looking at or listening to this freakazoid for 30 seconds, let alone 30 minutes- gack!!!)

*U-Va. alumni lobbying to be better represented on Board of Visitors

*Local GOP congressmen support funding bill — with a catch (“Randy Forbes won’t support a final version unless automatic defense cuts are stopped, and Scott Rigell wants to forbid legislators from taking long breaks until they pass budget and spending bills.”)

*A Case for Virginia (“AOL co-founder Steve Case and his wife, Jean, spend weekends in a one-bedroom cottage amid the vineyards of Virginia’s Madison County. Their goal: to turn their winery into a showcase for the state’s budding wine industry”)

*One more day of spectacular before clouds and showers head our way

*Harper’s homer helps Nats beat Marlins and keep playoff hope alive (“With Thursday’s win over Miami, Washington is five games behind Cincinnati for the final wild card slot.”)

In stark contrast to everything Pope Francis believes (and Jesus preached), Virginia Republicans today voted – with one exception – to starve the poor. That’s right, the following Virginia Republicans are so nasty, so vicious, so mean-spirited, that they voted to cut food stamps by $40 billion over 10 years. If this bill ever became law – which it won’t because Democrats control the U.S. Senate and the White House, thank goodness – “3.8 million people would lose Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits in 2014.” But that’s exactly the type of horrendous stuff that will happen if the American people are ever crazy enough to hand the keys of government over to these lunatics.

With that, here’s the Virginia “Poor People Starvation Caucus.”

Eric Can’tor, Randy Forbes Bob Goodlatte, Morgan Griffith, Robert Hurt, Scott Rigell, Rob Wittman

Voting NOT to starve millions of poor Americans were Frank Wolf (what got into him? he actually voted the right way on something for a change!), Gerry Connolly, Jim Moran, Bobby Scott.

Oh, and a special “screw you” to Eric Can’tor, who pushed this bill and who actually had the chutzpah to claim that it was “designed to give people a hand when they need it most.” Can we say “Orwellian?” The fact is, the legislation imposes new work requirements, but contains NO new funding for job training (let alone any new jobs for the people on nutritional assistance)! These Republicans are truly diabolical.

My two cents: By now, we’ve all seen John Whitbeck’s disturbing comments from Tuesday, and I’m very disappointed that Randy Minchew and Ken Cuccinelli didn’t speak up to correct their friend John Whitbeck when he made his comment. I’m even more disappointed that they didn’t say anything about it for the rest of their rally. We don’t need insensitive and clueless people like John Whitbeck as our public leaders, and we don’t need people who won’t speak up when they see a friend saying something offensive. We need leaders who will stand up for what’s right.